Battles and Strategies
by bfireworks5
Summary: Well known fact of the affairs of gods that Ares and Aphrodite was in a relationship, also that Ares was a hot-blooded war-monger. Athena is the ever dutiful daughter of Zeus that prefers the company of books than people... but after an accident during a war that they really didn't need to be in, could change the relationship between these two enemies into something more intense ..
1. prologue

_Everyone knows the gods of war, Ares with his brutality and Athena for wisdom. They were on opposite sides during the Trojan War and have bickered for centuries._

 _What would happen if that changed?_

 _The gods of Olympus are known for their affairs and infidelities, as well as their half or full-god children. Ares the most famous (close 2nd to Zeus) with his lover, Aphrodite._

 _What if the flames of war couldn't be put out by that of lust and beauty?_

 _Athena is renowned for being Zeus' strategist and favorite out of all his children. But what if the flames of one war can extinguish the fire of another?..._

Soldiers of both sides fighting, slaughtering and butchering into each other with the only thought of driving the other back. Blood and cries of agony flying everywhere, the ringing and battering of steel deafening all ears. The only way to distinguish one another way by the colors of their country and shield used. Amongst the skirmish were two particular gods on opposite sides contributing to the morale of the side; giving confidence to the men with the idea of victory. The Trojans hailed the War god Ares while the Greeks favored Athena to have them join the fight. Athena was splattered in blood, sweat coating her body and hair disheveled from its braids; armor dimmed form the coating of blood and grime while her battle toga was tattered as scratches and cuts littered her body.

After defeating another opponent, she turned to see an equally, if not more bloodied Ares cutting down men left and right with his mighty sword. He was tall, covered in blood, grime, and sweat. His armor gleamed in the sun under the blood while his battle toga was shredded. He was close enough to spot her after finishing his latest victims. His crimson eyes caught hold of her metal grays, leading him to his next target to approach her. It was as if their surroundings fell away as these deities sized each other up, readying for a long- awaited match.

Ares was the first to strike, parried by her favored spear, ramming her shoulder into his chest to drive him back. Their battle grew more intense with each given blow. The soldiers that fought around either paid them no mind to focus on their own battle, moved to give the raging immortals more space to move around; or watch from the sidelines cheering on their protecting sovereign. Some soldiers even tried to help their god only to either be pushed away or be cut down by a stray blocked stroke. Eventually the soldiers went back to the task at hand, to eliminate their opponent to obtain glory.

Ares and Athena were equal in strength, both unwilling to back down from pride to best the other. They continued to trade blows as the battlefield was being covered by fallen warriors, too focused on the other. As their focus was strictly set on one another, they missed the additional participants enter from behind to assist in the victory of their god. As Athena deflected another brutal strike, she noticed a soldier behind the dueling war god; preparing to land a blow onto her opponent's back without his knowledge of it ever coming. Thinking fast, she lunged under Ares' sword arm giving her a perfect shot to impale the lone warrior through the chest.

Quickly removing the spear blade from the mortal, changed stance to twirl her weapon to the opposite side to take on the next challenger she sensed at her back. With a final thrust upward; she turned her upper torso to witness the piercing of the tip into Ares' muscular chest, just shy of his heart. It was as if time slowed and the world stopped for a moment before speeding up as Area was stabbed to the end of her spear point, causing golden-red ichor to flow from the wound and his mouth. A frozen expression of surprised shock was printed on his face while a look of shock and horror was on hers; both not moving while trying to figure out how it came to be. Athena slowly pulled back, still in shock of her actions while Ares continued to stare at the entry point.

Yes, i do know that in the original story of the Trojan war, Ares went to war under the influence of Aphrodite and that is was Diomedes who stabbed him with the help of Athena. Comment to continue as a story!


	2. Chapter 1

The war around them had seemed to end leading the two entities to dissolve into golden flakes that carried into the heavens to reassemble in a courtyard of Olympus. As they regained their humanoid forms, the glamorous green sprawling gardens were being filled with gods and goddesses of all levels sharing looks of concern and shock from the state the warriors were in or what they witnessed. Ares swayed on his feet while Athena stumbled to stead him while calling out to Apollo and Hebe for medical assistance. The onlookers were frozen in place taking in the concern that Athena was showing towards a known foe, until she demanded the two gods' presence again to break their stupor. The two requested beings rushed up to the pair, Apollo on the other side of Ares while Hebe was supporting Athena from behind her.

Apollo examined the wound before explaining that they had to move him to his temple for better comfort and away from prying eyes, glancing up at the crowd of gossip-hungry immortals that surrounded them. Athena was still in shock and numb that it took the prompting of Hebe to get a reaction from the goddess. Between the two of them, being that Ares was all muscle and dying weight; they trekked to the large structure of columns and sconces that made the war god's home ominous. The servants quickly made a path while some ran off to fetch items required to heal for the two healers. The maze of hallways, open-concept courtyard and pathways lead to the grand space of his bedchambers.

Complete with attachment bathing room, armory, balcony, and large open space that lead to the raised dais that rested an enormous cloud of red and maroon silks with many pillows with furs and blankets covering it. The open space/ entertainment area was also covered and surrounded by reds and black cushions, pillows and a short long coffee table with a silver tray of wine, food and a water pitcher for guests or his use. Heaving his now unconscious body up the dais and situating him onto the enormous bed, Hebe trailing behind with the servants; started to lay out all the instruments needed to heal the blood-lustful god. Athena, being less versed in the healing practice, but still knowledgeable to the basics; helped the two healers whenever she could like lifting the brute and wiping the blood and sweat from the patient's skin periodically. After administering the last salve and wrapping his chest up, Apollo and Hebe packed up the left-over herbs to make their way out the door while Athena remained by the sleeping god's side.

When they reached the door, sensing a missing person; Apollo turned to address her yet fell silent when he watched he dab at his forehead with a cloth to remove some sweat. Sensing that she wasn't going to move anytime soon, led the other goddess out of the room and down the corridors towards the exit. Athena vaguely sensed their exiting presence while focusing entirely on the prone figure in front of her. Seeing Ares, her supposed opposite and archrival on the bed so lifeless and silent unnerved her as well as shock from the pain felt of causing his condition. Ares was believed to be an unstoppable force and to see him like this would shock anyone that even the mighty Ares can fall.

As she wiped his brow to rid it of sweat again, she thought of how this all happened (shouldn't have meddled Aphrodite) and their history of hostility. _'It would shock anyone to see how I acted today'_ the thought crossed her mind as everything replayed in her mind, analyzing every step and move made during that awful battle. Just thinking about it made a knot in her stomach and choked up to where tears formed, but she refused to let fall from her eyes. This wasn't like her but felt right as a throb of pain pulsed in her breast where her heart laid beneath the skin. It hurt her more because she couldn't come up with a rational, logical answer as to her predicament that didn't involve any mindless, useless emotional interference.

While she battled with her mind and emotions, the prone patient on the bed started to stir into consciousness. Sweat coated every part of his body and felt a heaviness in his limbs that was a foreign sensation to him. Ares has never felt this weak, this vulnerable, this _mortal_ in all his existence that it irritated and unnerved him at the same time. Nothing on this plain or beyond scared Ares, but if what he felt now was anything close; then it surely put some fear into the war god for the first time as well as admiration for the person who inflicted his wound. Glancing at his surroundings, he found that he was taken and put in his chambers with the inflictor of said wound brooding at his bedside while caring for him.

 _'Must be divine humor'_ he thought since Athena was the cause of his injury and the look of distress on her face as she was unaware of his awareness. While observing his counterpart and offender, noticed that she was still in her battle gear, looked disheveled and conflicted about something only she could see as well as panicked when her eyes finally looked towards him. Athena jumped with a gasp as she took in the deep rust of his eyes as they stared back at her _. 'Ares was awake and most likely going to try to kill me'_ she thought as she took in the less severe pale skin and the still sweat-soaked face that was her opposite. She leaned forward to wipe off his forehead again as he watched her, gaging her movements for possible threats and that made her even more nervous.

 _ **Yes I know that the historical tale states that Ares went to war because of Aphrodite and that it was Diomedes who stabbed him with Athena's help.**_

 _ **Comment to continue this into a story!**_


	3. Chapter 2

The chamber's silence and air grew from somber and serene to awkward and tense as the war deities continued to eye each other for any signs of attack. Athena started to fidget with her fingers while Ares continued to stare her down until finally breaking the silence. "How are you feeling?" she quickly inquired, a foreign feeling rising in her chest as he started to gage his current condition. Ares was known for many things like violence and not showing weakness; but as of now watching him wince and clench his teeth at every new-found pain caused Athena to feel sympathy that made her start to think of him in a different way. Much to her annoyance, Ares started to try to get up, only for him to groan and snarl as he stretched out sore muscles and pulled at fresh stitches.

Athena quickly maneuvered to reach him, half-climbing on his enormous bed to push down on his uninjured shoulder and half on him to restrain him physically while reprimanding "You shouldn't move, you'll tear out all of Apollo's and Hebe's work and are lucky enough to still be breathing. With the way you were, Hades would have soon taken you as a residence of the underworld."

He grunted in response, only giving a little resistance as she guided him back down onto the pillows while retreating to the side of the bed. "I am a god, I cannot be killed so easily." he stated, sweat again appearing on his forehead which Athena quickly dabbed away with a moist cloth to cool down the feverish god.

"That may be, but even gods can suffer from mortal wounds; especially from heavenly weapons. You were luckily maimed and have enough will to refuse Lord Hades' call. Though maimed badly enough to catch said whisper." she explained, making sure he was comfortable before moving on to check on the stitches and bandages that covered most of his upper torso. As she worked, Ares observed the way she gave feather-light touches that sent sparks and tingling sensations every time she traced a row to see if any broke.

He also watched the expression on her face while she did it, a look of relief mixed with concern and something else shined through her eyes as her face was mostly dictated by a soft look of concern. It shocked the male that the deity that fought him on almost everything was actually caring for him, making sure everything was going well with his healing. As she worked on him, Ares started to study her features, how her dark hair curled around her shoulders and glowed red with the sconce light. Her skin gleamed with an opalescence under all the dirt and grime still caked to her body and lips a natural dark shade of maroon, much darker than his lover's painted red. ' _To taste and to feel them, along with the taste of her skin…'_ the thought slithered through his mind, surprising the god for its unusual content.

While Ares was lost in his mind, Athena was studying the wound and surrounding areas of the thread work for any signs of irritation or infection, though rarely would a god catch a disease that wasn't divine in nature itself unless there was a serious complication or compromise to say god's system which was the case of Ares and his wound. While observing the mar on his chest, her eyes started to wonder to the muscles that were home on his torso with a light dusting of dark hair that wasn't truly visible until up close as well as trailing down to the washboard abs that dominated the lower part of his upper body. She was mesmerized by the sconce light that dances on his tanned skin, causing a glow to reflect the shadows that defined the plains of bare flesh. _'To feel and glide over it, to feel the heat of it along with those hands splaying against mine…'_ shocked the goddess of its vulgar content pulled herself back up along with a stay hand that was wondering too close to the god's left pectoral.

The two Olympians sat for a moment in silence while staring that the opposing other, Ares with darkening eyes and Athena with heaving pants as well as flush across her toned cheeks. They each inspected the other while questioning themselves on the sudden change of one's perspective of the other. The firelight played off their features illuminating and emphasizing the best of their profiles and enhancing their appeal to the opposite sex. Like hooks, their eyes did not stray from the other; hypnotized or tranced by the colors the swirled and merged that unknowing to the gods acted like a pull that drew them towards each other. The pull drew them close, closer than they've ever permitted themselves to be in the other's presence with half-lidded smoldering eyes and breaths becoming open before the spell broke by the loud popping of the wood from the fire pit.

Athena threw herself back, completely removing her body from the bed and putting distance between the desirable god and her person. Ares remained still transfixed on his bed looking up at the panicking goddess with a look of debauchery directed at her. The look subconsciously transferred to its target and was semi-mirrored with a mixture of panic and hesitation that reflected on the goddess' face. "You should be fine now, everything in order and no complications so far. I'll come on the 'morrow to see have you're fairing. Shall I notify Aphrodite, so she can come and nurse you?" she questioned, hoping to leave quickly and be able to return to her temple to gain some insight on what had just transpired between to two of them.

Ares declined the offer and bid the goddess good night, he too distracted on the events that just occurred playing out in his head again and again trying to find clues as to what was going on or changing since his awakening. All the while Ares was lost in his head, he payed no attention to the goddess that has captured his attention flee from the room and disappear into the night.

 _ **Hey guys here's another chapter, hope u like it!**_


	4. Chapter 3

True to her vow that she made, Athena did return the following day and weeks nursing Ares back to health. She arrived at the same time in the morning every day to tend to his wounds and check on his condition to see if he'd contracted another fever for the first few days while he quietly observed her at work. After the danger period was over, she then would help feed him until he had strength to feed himself, helped him regain his ability to walk and helped bath him on occasion with the help of servants and Apollo due to the increase of his mass against her own. It was on one of these occasions where she was helping him keep his balance on the walk from his main chambers to the bathing chambers that caused another stir in the nature of their relationship.

It was midday on Olympus with the Goddess of War paying her regular trips and time in the other God of War's temple as to assist him with the daily tasks of the day. She first helped him eat him morning meal and had him practice walking again since this was the goal of the week after getting over his illness and having his wounds in the last stages of healing. She left him on his bed as two male servants came to assist him in getting ready to bathe while Athena went to the bathing chambers to prepare the large sunken in marble basin while also adding oils to the water and gathering towels for when he was done. All the while, Ares was making his way slowly towards the connecting chamber with the help of the aid enlisted by Athena. He made it all the way to the doorway before he dismissed the men stating he could make the rest of the journey while glazing at the oblivious goddess that was leaning over the tub adding the oils and soaps.

A heat started to spread throughout his body the longer he observed her movements, the way sunlight and sconce-light filtered in and laid across her shoulders; hitting her skin and hair making the undertones and highlights shine. When Athena was finished with her task on making the bath, she straightened up and turned only to be surprised to see the healing god standing behind her, watching her every move with an unknown expression on his face causing her to faulter and trip backwards into the steaming water. The water splashed in accompanied with her shrilled cry and spilled over the edge and onto the floor, making it slippery and more difficult to navigate for Ares as he come to her aid. He found her in waist high water with soaked clothes plastered to her skin, leaving nothing to the imagination as well as seeing her dress being completely see-through. Athena was still in shock of the situation at hand before becoming aware of the only male presence in the room.

She looked up to find that Ares had moved from his spot at the entrance to the side of the pool, an unfamiliar look plastered on his face that she's seen when he's eyeing other women as well as an unnatural heating of her body in response to this new look. Their eyes connected and time stood still in that moment, nothing moved or dared to disturb the room that was filled with Helios' light and the sound of dripping water from the waterlogged goddess. _'The epitome of beauty…'_ whispered in his head as he continued to gaze at the woman that he'd been in the care of and having conflicting feelings for as of late. The more time he's spent in her company, the less hostile their relationship has gotten to the point where they were having civil conversation.

A breeze is what broke the silence and connection between the gods, bringing realization of the situation and mortification to the waterlogged body. A flush blazed down her body as she gasped in shock and horror as she looked upon herself to see the view that she was providing to the dumbstruck male, activating her instincts to flee with what little of her dignity she had left to salvage.


End file.
